Birthstone Jewelery

Garnet is the traditional birthstone for the month of January. Its rich, burgundy red colour and inner fire have helped make it a favourite addition to jewellery for more than 5,000 years. High-quality garnets have vivid, saturated colour and good translucency.

Brilliant purple amethyst is the birthstone for the month of February. These vibrant gemstones have long been part of crown jewels and remain very popular today because of their beauty and availability. Amethyst is a variety of quartz, and high-quality specimens will have saturated colour and pure purple hues.

The birthstone for the month of March is aquamarine. These light to very light blue gemstones are a variety of beryl, like emerald. They've long been associated with water, and are especially treasured by seafaring people. A high-quality aquamarine will have clear, bright colours and lighter tones.

Diamond is the traditional birthstone of April. Treasured for their fire and brilliance, diamonds have been prized for a wide variety of jewellery for centuries. Look for high-quality diamonds that have a good balance of the Four Cs - cut, colour, clarity, and carat weight.

Rich green emerald is May's birthstone. Emeralds have been prized in cultures around the world for centuries, and their colour is the definitive green. Emerald, like aquamarine, is a variety of beryl and truly flawless specimens are exceptionally rare. Finest-quality emeralds have vivid, saturated colour.

The traditional June birthstone is pearl. Pearls are an organic gem, and only about one in 20 pearl growing mollusks will produce gem quality pearls. The unique irridescent lustre of pearls have helped make pearls a jewellery essential for generations of women around the world.

Because of its fiery crimson colour, ruby continues to make an eye-catching choice for jewellery. Ruby is the traditional birthstone for July. It's a variety of corundum, like sapphire, and shares sapphire's natural vibrancy. While flawless examples are extremely rare, the best examples have good translucency and colour depth.

Bright, green peridot is the birthstone for the month of August. Peridot's unique vivid green will add a lively sparkle to any piece of jewellery. Peridot has been treasured from Egypt to Hawaii for thousands of years. The finest peridot has bright yellowish-green hues and good translucency.

Sapphire, the September birthstone, is most well-known for its velvety blue hues and dramatic highlights. However, pink sapphire is also a popular choice for jewellery. A variety of corundum, sapphires are in the same gemstone family as ruby. High-quality examples of sapphire have good translucency and vibrant colour.

Opal is the birthstone for October and its fiery incandescence produces an endless variety of colour flashes. A high-quality opal offers a unique experience every time you look at it. Opals are cut into rounded cabochons to enhance their exceptional play of colour. Never clean opals with an ultrasonic cleaner.

Golden yellow-orange citrine is the traditional November birthstone. This fiery gemstone gets its name from the French word for lemon. Citrine is a variety of quartz, like amethyst, and high-quality examples will add a bright warm splash of colour to any piece of jewellery.

Radiant blue topaz is the traditional birthstone for the month of December. This dramatic gemstone has given jewellery designs a unique blue fire for thousands of years. It is well-known for its dynamic colour and range of vivid blue hues. High-quality blue topaz has bright colour and good transparency.